One Flaw of Fairyland
by Alix Lilith
Summary: He's waiting for someone to turn around and say, "Why are you walking so slowly? C'mon, hurry up!" - vignette collection
1. Push

Disclaimer (for all): I don't own Okage or any of the recognizable characters used in this fic.

A.N: This will be a collection of drabbles/oneshots, most of which will be centered around Ari. There will be no definite parings, het or slash, though I will warn you if there's anything beyond a kiss/holding hands/etc. in either direction.

**Push**

Ari, like everyone else, has dreams. He isn't sure that he'll every achieve them; isn't sure that he'll ever be _real_ enough to ever start. But he knows that he can't stay in the shadows forever, and eventually, Ari will have to start moving forwards. The thought of leaving behind the moniker of "the boy" and becoming "Ari" scares him. It scares him into willingly closing his eyes and ignoring the clang of doors closing around him.

He, like everyone else, doesn't know who "Ari" is; isn't sure he wants to.

But then one day, he woke up. He turned around to see his shadow staring back at him. His shadow told him that _there is nothing you can do, I'm not leaving. Get used to it, you're mine now_. That day, it wasn't "the boy" who woke up but "Ari". Suddenly, moving forward wasn't something to be afraid of.

It was alright to follow the glittering trails of your dreams. It was alright to step out of the shadows and be seen by the world. "Ari" didn't have to hide behind "the boy" anymore. The face in the mirror wasn't a lie.

Now if only he would recognize that.


	2. Armor

A.N: I'm considering doing a few vignettes set in Alternate Universes… maybe one with mafia elements, like in KHR? Any suggestions or even complaints?

**Armor**

_Shut up,_ he wants to tell them. He wants to tell the world, _Shut up and stop looking at me; stop acting like you ever cared if I existed. Go back to thinking I'm just a mass hallucination._

Instead he stands there, waiting. He's always waiting it seemed, for what he doesn't know. Maybe he's waiting for them to realize that he isn't silent because he's worried about their feelings; that he doesn't care about them anymore than they do him. It's tiring though, waiting for them to realize that he is a creature of apathy. After waiting for so long, he had forgotten why he had even started. He had forgotten why he had chosen silence over them.

When was it alright for him to stop?

Was it ever alright if he did?

_Go back to not caring, stop making me regret building these walls. Stop it. Leave me alone._

"Shut up."

"Ari?/Slave?"

His eyes burned. They burned and screamed and _ached_. The rest of him trembled; shook with agitated energy. That same energy pressed at his throat, robbing him of the oxygen he needed. _Calm down, you chose to be like this._ He knew that, knew it better than his reflection or his mother's humming. _You can't regret something you did willingly._ Then why did he?

"Just _shut up_."


	3. Hospital

A.N: This one was kind of interesting to think up and write. Later, I might come back to it and use it as a base for a chapter-length fic or more vignettes. Try and guess about what gave me the idea…

Warning: post-game which means _**spoilers!**_

**Hospital**

The nightmares have always been a constant companion. When everyone stopped seeing him; when he had become a Forgotten, the nightmares remained. They reminded him that, at one point, Ari had existed enough to know fear. It shouldn't be comforting but it is.

So when the Innkeeper at Triste woke him from the third night of pained screams, ground-shaking explosions and aghast sobs he still smiled. Even though the same horrified tears dripped down his face, Ari felt his cheeks ache from holding an unfamiliar expression for too long as he reassured the Innkeeper that he was fine. He pretended not to see the doubtful and disturbed looks he got as he paid, or the pitying ones from the other customers who would never leave.

Even then, when he was so sensitive to the opinions of others, he hadn't cared. A part of him had remembered being a part of the world and Ari had wanted that back. The Ringmaster had been kind enough to point out the way, and so he started to run to catch up with everyone else. With the constant nightmares it hadn't taken him nearly as long as they had thought it would. Ari hadn't really cared; he was part of the world again.

That had been years ago, back when Marlene was still hiding from the world and Beiloune was still classifying everything into submission. Now he's the only one remaining from that era. Everyone else had died or vanished. Rosalyn and Stan had gone down in the blaze of glory they had no doubt wanted their deaths to be; he wasn't sure about the others. Yet here he is, seemingly thousands of years later, still trapped in the body of a sixteen year old.

The world around him is dying bit by bit and once again, his only companion is his nightmares. There are days that he thinks reality is just a dream, one he has been in for far too long. Ari isn't sure what he's still doing here, in this place. By now, after the Great Quake, there are only small clusters of people around the world and he has taken to walking the halls of the Library, a lingering shadow of the past.

One day, an urge to return to his old home strikes him.

Some of the walls have crumbled, there are gaping holes in the roof, and ivy has taken over most of the remaining structure. Only one thing remains nearly pristine. The boarded up door that, once upon a time, he and his sister had spent hours guessing what lay beyond it. Over time the boards had begun to rot with the rest of the house and now it is a simple matter to rip them off. The handle turns smoothly, without a creak…

Ari's eyes open slowly, achingly slow. His lungs hurt along with everything else, making air a commodity worth more than gold.

"Ari? Ari, can you hear me?" Mother that was Mother, wasn't it? He tries to turn his head but that hurts even worse, so he lets his eyes drift in the direction of the familiar voice.

_Mother. _What was she…?

"Ari, oh God, Ari we were worried that you'd never wake up. Does anything hurt? Do you want me to call for a nurse? What am I saying, of course you do… Oh God. I'm so sorry. We tried to find you but then the air sirens started… T-They wouldn't let us look for you. And then Stanley and James found you. My poor baby… poor baby… my poor son… oh God…"


	4. Sunshine

A.N: The first of the AUs. As you can see, it's not _that_ out there… just an adjustment of Ari's interests. Hopefully he isn't too OOC, though given that we do have our pick of a few gung-ho responses I'd say it isn't that bad.

…This is why I don't usually write humor.

**Sunshine**

"Good morning!" Even though he had burst through the doors, none of the clerks so much as glanced at him. Ari slipped past the Classification Profiler to his father's desk. Seconds and minutes went by, but his father continued on with his work. The cheerful smile on his face sharpened dangerously.

"Slave, what do you think you're doing? I don't have time for you to dawdle and make social calls! Your dark Master has a world to conquer!" Ah, right. Slave to the Evil King and all that nonsense. Ari had nearly forgotten… such a shame to be reminded so quickly.

"Eh? Did you say something?"

"Grrr… Don't get cheeky with me you ungrateful–" Father finally decided to pay attention to the flailing mess before his desk.

"Huh? Ari! You came to see your cool dad at work again? I'm so proud!"

"Ah, right. Yes well…" he sighed. Why was he related to such insane people? "I need you to sign a few things." Ari smiled brightly. On anyone else, the expression would have been reassuring but with him, there was something that didn't seem right. Of course, no one had ever paid him enough attention to recognize any sort of facial cues that would warn them of what they were getting into. So it was with a light heart that his father accepted the small stack of papers and signed the appropriate lines.

"School slips?"

"No." Stan grumbled in the background, throwing a fit over such lowly humans ignoring _the_ Evil King. It was amusing to listen to, really.

"Then, what's it for?"

"They're transfer forms, allowing me total control over Tenel. Well, they will once the Elder signs them." He continued to smile as the room went silent… except for Stan, of course.

"_What?"_

"I'm taking over the world, didn't ya know?"


End file.
